​How to buy a home on a budget?

For most of the people buying a house is nothing less than living a
dream. It might also be one of the biggest life decisions and financial
decision you will ever make in your whole lifetime. Considering its grandiosity
and the amount of money involved, buying a house needs a streamlined thought
process that is anonymous with the other members of the family too. It also
needs ease of finance in terms of credits, loans, etc. Along with the
aforementioned, there are a lot of other factors to be considered as well. The
size of a house, decor associated, location and neighbourhood and even some
beliefs like Vaastu and FengShui. Only after you find all these factors compiled
in one property, it’s time to transform that house into your home. So to help
you deal with this humongous issue with much confidence, we bring to you few tact’s
and tips that will assist you in purchasing and designing a dream home for
yourself and your family.

Decide what you need

After deciding to buy a house, there are other concerns to handle as well. First of all \, you need to decide what you need. Have a head count of members in the family, which will help you decide the number of rooms along with few guest rooms as well. Now if you have kids, grandparents and other members as in a joint family, you need to discuss the preferences and priorities of all. After everything is decided you need to call the architect or the designer to make a rough sketch so that you can analyse how the actual house will look like. You also need to consider the number of floors, bathrooms, hallways, etc. Along with these, you also need to pay attention to the other features like swimming pool, garage and garden to name a few.

Location

Lucky 4 Ranch

Location is the primary concern while choosing the house. First of all, you will need to decide a budget. Now, while looking for a house you need to look for several factors. The location should be such that it is easily accessible to schools, colleges, hospitals, banks and more importantly your workplace. If you have kids, the location should be such that it has parks, children’s play area and entertainment spots easily accessible. Also, the safety and security of the area is of prime importance. You also need to consider the proximity of highways, interstates and the markets from the house. If you want a peaceful neighbourhood you need to avoid looking in the commercially developed and crowded zones. Also, for nature lover’s wooden cabins, beachfront houses and lakeside houses are the best options to choose from. Designed by Uptic Studios, architects from US, this is picture from a beautiful country style house.

Dimension

bungalow project

The dimensions of the house also hold equal importance while buying a new property. The dimensions should be decided as per the vaastu for many homes. If you do not believe in such things the dimensions should be considered as per the personal preference or family size. For example, if there is one bedroom for two kids it should be big enough to hold two beds, separate wardrobes, study areas, etc. Also the dimensions should be such that there is always a possibility of expansion. Always go for a guest’s room that is highly useful when you have more number of people around. Places like kitchen and bathroom too need to have defined dimensions as per need.

Style

The choice of style is a personal preference. There is no point looking in a modern house option if you only want to go for a rustic décor. So, to save time, money and energy, try to decide on the style before starting the search. You could easily go for a modern bungalow, a country style manor house, a beachfront house or even a normal cosy apartment depending on your budget and taste. You could even go for a combination of styles and patterns to fulfil every member’s demand. There is always an option of refurbishment. So in case you are getting an apartment at a lower price you can refurbish it into a country style home. But all of this needs to be decided before, as it helps you calculate the total cost and budget involved.

Where to look?

This question does not have a specific answer. Obviously there is a plethora of options to choose from. But the choice of location depends on many factors. Write down your preferences first. Whether you need greener neighbourhood, peaceful area, commercially active zone, etc. to at least shortlist different areas to look into. After that you need to decide the budget. Every locality and even block has a different property rate. So, from the shortlisted areas filter the ones that suit your budget. From the available options you can then choose according to accessibility and proximity to various areas. This depends on your preferences and family priorities. The location and style of the house go hand in hand. Like if you want a country style house, there is no point looking amidst the high-rise buildings. You should only look for greener neighbourhood and house with gardens and conservatories.

Things not to do

Now while you have decided what to do, you should also be sure about what not to do. Jot down the points that you need to avoid while buying a house. Like you might not want to buy a house in unprotected neighbourhood. Also, you do not want a commercial and crowded set up near your house. These things will ease off your decision making process and will help you shortlist amongst different options. Also, if you are Eco friendly you do not want to waste energy, water and air. Therefore, you will need solar panels, huge glass windows and maybe a rain harvesting station in your new home. Factors like such will help you choose a house easily and more quickly. Also, if you do not want a swimming pool or a garden, you can easily look for a city apartment and can settle there in no time. If there is no need of a home office or study place, you can even go with a minimalist house.